1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a reproduction apparatus and a reproduction method, and, in particular, to a technique which is suitably used to reproduce a moving image from a specific position.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, it has become possible to reproduce moving images in various environments. In a case where a user starts watching a moving image, reproduction of the moving image is generally started from the head thereof. Here, each of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 2001-069487 and 2006-013792 discloses a technique of reproducing a moving image from the middle by using information including specific position information indicating a specific position of the moving image from which the reproduction is started.
Further, in a case where a moving image is edited, data which concerns the moving image and was used before the moving image is edited cannot be used because its consistency is lost. Consequently, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-351878 discloses a technique of maintaining consistency of data even after editing of a moving image, by previously embedding information enabling to restore the data in each frame of the moving image.
However, in the technique disclosed in each of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 2001-069487 and 2006-013792, as described above, if the moving image after the editing is reproduced from the middle by using the information indicating the reproduction start position generated before the editing, there is a problem that the moving image is reproduced from an unintended position which is different from the reproduction start position intended before the editing.
Further, in the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-351878, although the moving image after the editing can be restored so as to be in the state same as that before the editing, there is a problem that a user oneself has to select the reproduction start position to reproduce the moving image from the middle. Moreover, if history information is used to reproduce the moving image in such a case, there is a problem that a capacity of the moving image increases in proportion to the number of times of the editing.
The present invention, which has been completed in consideration of the above problems, intends to be able to reproduce the moving image generated after the editing from the middle as well as the moving image generated before the editing, by using the information for reproducing, from the middle, the moving image generated before the editing.